8 Tips on how to introduce Telehealth to Patients

Alvin Tanicala
2 min readJun 11, 2021

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Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Telemedicine and its related terms have become more widely used by patients. Due to the wide acceptance of this new form of care, many patients no longer see traditional doctor visits as an unacceptable alternative.

Some patients still need more education about the various types of telemedicine services that are now available. Or maybe they're just not sure how to get started.

  1. If the patient has never seen a doctor remotely, it is important to let them know about the various advantages of telehealth.
  2. If the patient has never seen a doctor face-to-face, it is helpful to refer to common telehealth platforms.
  3. If necessary, communicate that the session is happening in real-time.
  4. If necessary, discuss the security measures that are necessary to ensure that the session is secure.
  5. If a session is being recorded, the patient must be given explicit consent. This includes information about what information may be shared with the patient’s parent or guardian.
  6. Create a visual context for patients to see you in action. With the help of a camera, give them a virtual tour of your office so that they can see no one else in it.
  7. Have a look at the various technical difficulties that occurred during the introduction. If they seem to occur suddenly, discuss these issues with the patient.
  8. Before beginning a session, ask your patients about their thoughts on the topic of the session. This will help them feel more comfortable and may help them feel less stressed.

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Alvin Tanicala

Registered HIT man. Follower. Learner. Analog Life Virtualization.